Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

December 23, 2020

Multiplex Assays for the Identification of Serological Signatures of SARS-CoV-2 Infection: An Antibody-Based Diagnostic and Machine Learning Study

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Testing for multiple biomarkers, as opposed to testing for a single antibody, increased the sensitivity of correctly identifying past SARS-CoV-2 infection. A multiplex serological assay was used to measure IgG and IgM antibody responses to seven SARS-CoV-2-specific antigens, two seasonal coronavirus antigens, and three non-coronavirus antigens. Antibodies were measured in serum samples collected up to 39 days after symptom onset from 215 adults with RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19. The results suggest that IgG antibody levels to a single antigen can classify samples from individuals previously infected with SARS-CoV-2 with 92% sensitivity and 99% specificity. Measuring additional biomarkers with a multiplex assay can improve classification performance to 99% sensitivity and 99% specificity.

Rosado et al. (Dec 23, 2020). Multiplex Assays for the Identification of Serological Signatures of SARS-CoV-2 Infection: An Antibody-Based Diagnostic and Machine Learning Study. The Lancet Microbe. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2666-5247(20)30197-X